Children and military veterans walk in the annual Veterans Day Parade in this 1985 photo. The parade has long been a part of the city’s Veterans Day tradition. Nationally, Veterans Day originated as “Armistice Day” on Nov. 11, 1919, the first anniversary of the end of World War I. Nov. 11 became a national holiday in 1938 and is intended to pay tribute to all American veterans. While many veterans organizations around Indianapolis held Veterans Day events, there was no citywide observance until at least the mid-1960s. The observance annually includes a Veterans Day service, parade and banquet.
Sources: Indiana Historical Society, veteransdayindy.org
Credit: This photo is courtesy of the Indiana Historical Society and is part of the Indianapolis Recorder Collection. More images are available at images.indianahistory.org.
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